New book on Irish Traditional Music

Trad Irish Music
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From the Belfast Telegraph:

Books: Traditional music down to a song
THE WALTONS GUIDE TO IRISH MUSIC, by Harry Long, Waltons, £12.25

By Neil Johnston
njohnston@belfasttelegraph.co.uk

03 December 2005
IRISH traditional music enjoys a worldwide popularity but it has long been lacking a handy ready reference work. Now that gap has been filled.

This 427-page paperback, presented in A-Z format, is a reader-friendly fount of information for all who love and follow the music.

Its 900 entries are a veritable who’s who of the tradition’s most important and influential musicians, singers and groups, both past and present.

Among the many northern instrumentalists and singers listed are Cathal Hayden, Arty McGlynn, Paul Brady, Cathal McConnell, Marcas O Murchu and the late Sean McGuire, Derek Bell and Sarah Makem.

The author recalls, for example, how folk song collectors from all over the world would visit the remarkable Co Armagh singer Sarah Makem at her home in Keady.

She was a living archive of rarely heard songs and ballads, many of which she passed on to her famous son Tommy. During the 1950s, one of the traditional songs for which she was best known, As I Roved Out, became the signature tune of a popular BBC radio series of that name. She died in 1983 at the age of 83, having gained an international reputation without ever leaving Keady.

The history and development of Irish song and dance over the years are examined in the book, and there are also detailed references to the instruments which have become associated with Irish music, from the Uilleann pipes to the fiddle and the bodhran to the bouzouki. (The fife and the Lambeg drum, representative of the loyalist musical tradition, both get their due mentions as well).

The copiously illustrated book also includes a select discography and bibliography, as well as helpful lists of specialist record companies, festivals and summer schools.

The author of this folk encyclopaedia, which has taken 10 years to research and write, is the whistle player, teacher and Irish music lecturer, Harry Long, from Slane.

He first became involved in the music when, as a schoolboy on holiday at his uncle’s hotel in Carrick-on-Suir, he heard many of the country’s finest musicians playing in the session room down in the basement.

Among them was Liam Clancy of the famous Clancy Brothers, and he paid tribute to Long’s dedicated work in compiling this comprehensive guide.

He said: “For those of us who love Irish music and the people who play, sing and foster it in all its forms, this book is a treasure trove and an essential resource. I highly recommend it.”

Long himself says that writing the book had been a journey of discovery for him.

“While it is difficult to capture the spirit of Irish music in words, I hope the book can offer a few pointers and enrich the reader’s knowledge,” he said.

He has certainly achieved that aspiration as far as this reader is concerned.

This informative and entertaining volume is tailor-made for delving into between the jigs and reels.


http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/lifestyle/special_interest/story.jsp?story=671615

MarkB

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Thank you for this post. I happened to have reserved a copy of this book upon hearing of its impending release, and I must say I completely and whole-heartedly second its recommendation. At the risk of sounding like an infomercial, this is a wonderful book and really, it should be in the library of every serious musician who performs Celtic/Irish music.

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There’s a great, er, review of this book by Harry Bradley on the November 2005 Irtrad archives if anyone’s interested.

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I am not sure it was Harry but someone called it a ‘potboiler’. I had a look at it in Custy’s during the week. My impression: get the Compendium instead if you’re shopping for a reference type of book.

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Hmm. Thought Harry had butted out of IRTRAD a while back. Perhaps he could give his impressions here if he reads this.

Steve

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Peter, could you say who the author of the Compendium is? I’m sure everyone knows this, but I don’t seem to know what the best reference book is.

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Not sure if this is what Peter was talking about, but I like Fintan Vallely’s The Companion to Irish Traditional Music. My copy is by New York University Press (1999–so much for Walton’s claim to filling a void). Part of what makes it a great book on the tradition is that most of the entries were written by a who’s who of the musicians themselves.

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Yes it was the Companion, Fintan V. (ed.)




Part of what makes it a great book on the tradition is that most of the entries were written by a who’s who of the musicians themselves.

A lot of people were asked for contributions, few did come up with something. As a result there are gaps and omissions and some areas get too much focus BUT it’s still a great work for what’s in it but the definitive version has yet to be compiled (it’s about time for a second, revised and expanded edition).

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I’d second that, Peter. But I wonder if sales warrant a revised edition. It’s almost funny who and what are absent from the first, but still a helpful book.